1878 Building


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1878 Building
Posted by: nordsider (---.hsd1.il.comcast.net)
Date: August 29, 2014 09:12AM

While viewing the buildings near the intersection of Grand, Halsted and Milwaukee, via Google street view, this building, located at the southwest corner of the intersection of Grand Avenue and Green Street caught my attention:

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=grand+%26+green,+chicago&hl=en&ll=41.891113,-87.649061&spn=0.0004,0.000669&sll=39.739318,-89.266507&sspn=9.863297,22.236328&t=h&hnear=W+Grand+Ave+%26+N+Green+St,+Chicago,+Illinois+60642&layer=c&cbll=41.891155,-87.649101&panoid=1nS8K8FasoUEWjjrrG1uXw&cbp=12,159.55,,0,-17.46&z=21

The winged gargoyles on the front corners of the roof and the carved date on the building's upper front of "1878", piqued my interest. I looked through Robinson's Atlas of the City of Chicago, 1886, and found the building with this description: "brick with a stone front." The building, according to Google street view does show a white front which I presume is made of "stone."

Also, the new building located across Green Street, at the southeast corner, also have winged gargoyles perched on it roof tops . . . maybe influenced somehow by the 1878 building across the street?

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: davey7 (---.dsl.chcgil.ameritech.net)
Date: August 29, 2014 12:37PM

I'd assume stone (limestone or sandstone) or stucco. The top is new (newly rebuilt) as are the gargoyles.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: rjmachon (---.hsd1.il.comcast.net)
Date: August 30, 2014 05:54PM

It was a restaurant, Paul Kamos back in 1928 according to the Polk Directory.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: nordsider (---.hsd1.il.comcast.net)
Date: August 30, 2014 06:26PM

rjmachon Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> It was a restaurant, Paul Kamos back in 1928
> according to the Polk Directory.


rjmachon,

Thanks for that past history. I wonder who occupied the building back 1878; but that's unknownable after 136 years.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: MisterDrexciya (---.adsl.online.nl)
Date: September 02, 2014 08:09AM

Speaking of this intersection:

what used to be in the -ugly grey painted- building in the northwest corner (between Grand and Milwaukee)? It has been boarded up for at least 15 years.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: nordsider (---.hsd1.il.comcast.net)
Date: September 03, 2014 10:14AM

MisterDrexciya Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Speaking of this intersection:
>
> what used to be in the -ugly grey painted-
> building in the northwest corner (between Grand
> and Milwaukee)? It has been boarded up for at
> least 15 years.

Yes, another mysterious group of buildings at this intersection. Again, Robinson's Atlas of the City, 1886, shows 4 or 5 brick buildings with possibly all frame buildings, wedged together within the triangle bounded by Milwaukee, Grand and Green; and they seem to be arraigned in the same pattern now shown in Google street view.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: PKDickman (---.lightspeed.cicril.sbcglobal.net)
Date: September 03, 2014 03:17PM

MisterDrexciya Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Speaking of this intersection:
>
> what used to be in the -ugly grey painted-
> building in the northwest corner (between Grand
> and Milwaukee)? It has been boarded up for at
> least 15 years.


All that property, and the bulk of the land across Green st., has, for dogs years, belonged to Irving Naiditch of Royal Ind. (restaurant supply). It used to be their shop and warehouse.

It has pretty much been "landbanked" since the '90s waiting for development bucks.
Some bucks came along and it was put into a planned development in '06 for a 13 story 145 unit condo development, but that was just before the mortgage collapse.

They renewed the Planned development in 2012 but not much has happened. I suspect they are drawing up a new development plan for a more unit, smaller unit, apartment building. (because that's where the money is now).

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: shekaago (70.58.230.---)
Date: September 03, 2014 07:33PM

Here's a bit more info on that Milwaukee/Green/Grand Triangle...

The most recent tenant in the Milwaukee/Grand/Green triangle was Royal Industries Restaurant Supplies which has moved to a location near Pulaski and Bryn Mawr. Here's a link to a development that is planned for that triangle. [url=http://chicago.curbed.com/archives/2013/10/04/meet-fifield-companys-future-grand-milwaukee-apartments.php]Grand/Milwaukee/Green Triangle[/url]
And here's a link to the request for zoning reclassification of that parcel. [url=http://http://chicagocouncilmatic.org/legislation/1344724 Zoning[/url]

For some history on that triangle block of buildings I picked 506 N. Milwaukee just as a reference point. Some of the buildings were built in 1890 and back then, that address would have been 216 N. Milwaukee, before the 1909 - 1911 street re-numbering, so I looked at those addresses in the Chicago Tribune Historical Archives and found a few different businesses there. There was a meat market, a Dave Hayman & Co., a Charles M. Jevne and a C. Jevne Grocery that sold a product called "Jevne's Celebrated Gold Mandarin Tea" and that address was also listed as "Italian headquarters" in a March 1897 article where a "Hesing meeting" was scheduled. Washington Hesing was a german politician.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: nordsider (---.hsd1.il.comcast.net)
Date: September 03, 2014 09:33PM

shekaago,

Thank you for your time and effort researching the Milwaukee/Halsted/Green triangle; it's most interesting! My wish, is that before the buildings are torn down, urban archeologists should be given an opportunity look at the site first; they just may find some interesting artifacts from 19th century Chicago . . . that's just my own peculiar interests. ;-)


Also, some information I have just found about Washington Hesing that you mention in your research.

http://flps.newberry.org/article/5418474_11_1631



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/04/2014 12:02PM by nordsider.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: WayOutWardell (---.dsl.chcgil.sbcglobal.net)
Date: September 04, 2014 12:14AM

A few years back there was another thread about these same buildings. I don't remember what the title was, unfortunately. I believe the subject was something along the lines of the Grand Avenue Italian community or some such.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: nordsider (---.hsd1.il.comcast.net)
Date: September 04, 2014 09:30AM

An interesting article about urban archaeologists in Chicago:

http://www.wbez.org/series/curious-city/construction-work-boon-urban-archaeologists-104958


Also, the video: Urban Archeology Field School: The Charnley-Persky House Dig

http://www.sah.org/about-sah/charnley-persky-house



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/04/2014 09:54AM by nordsider.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: shekaago (70.58.230.---)
Date: September 04, 2014 02:36PM

Thanks, nordsider! Fascinating information and video on urban archeology. I share your same wish. :-)

WayOutWardell... The thread you mentioned, I remember well! It has some great old photos of that area. It is in the Questions and Answers part of the Forum and the subject title is "Early Italian District... Grand/Milwaukee/Halsted.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: rjmachon (---.hsd1.il.comcast.net)
Date: September 06, 2014 09:21PM

The oldest building in the group appears to be 518-20 Milwaukee. It was built in 1888. The rest of them is around 1891 per CCA's Office. Here is a list of what stores was there in 1928 (per the Polk Directory) on the block from 502 to 524 Milwaukee.

500-08 Hirsch & Co. (clothing)
510 Goldboss Max (men's furngs)
512 LaManna Guy (jwlr)
514 Manno Ralph Real Est Co and Modern Mutual Life Ins Co
516 Vacant
518-20 Vacant
522-24 Yarmo Morris (Katie) general mercahdise



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 09/08/2014 05:47AM by rjmachon.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: nordsider (---.hsd1.il.comcast.net)
Date: September 07, 2014 08:33PM

Robinson's Atlas of the City of Chicago, 1886, shows 5 " house numbers" 216, 220, 224, 228, and 232 on Milwaukee Avenue; and 3 " house numbers" 108, 113 and 115 on the Grand
Avenue side of the Milwaukee/ Grand/ Green triangle. So, I presume, there were some building in existence by 1886 at least.

See Volume 4, plate 13
http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/11064.html

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: shekaago (---.sub-75-226-49.myvzw.com)
Date: September 09, 2014 06:19PM

In the 1887 Lakeside Directory of the City of Chicago (Google Books) Page 693, there is a reference to an Aldolph Hasterlik (one of the Hasterlik Brothers) having a saloon at 120 W. Indiana Street (now 833 Grand Avenue). Also in a 1915 Chicago Liquor Commission Report there is an A. Siraguska at that address listed as having a liquor license revoked and then later restored.

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Re: 1878 Building
Posted by: nordsider (---.hsd1.il.comcast.net)
Date: September 10, 2014 04:53PM

The Robinson's Atlas of the City of Chicago, 1886, shows 5 " house numbers" 216, 220, 224, 228, and 232 on Milwaukee Avenue side of the Grand (old street name was Indiana)/Milwaukee/Green triangle.


This is what I have found on the Milwaukee Avenue side; addresses in the 1880 Census, ED 103, pages 45 and 46, with "Profession, Occupation or Trade pf each person, male or female" and the "Relationship of each person to the head of the family this family -- whether wife, son, daughter, servant, boarder, or other".


212 - Butcher shop

218 - Shoemaker

220 - Clothing store

222 - Saloon keeper

224 - Crockery store

226 - Night police

228 - Physician

232 - Drug clerk



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/11/2014 10:18AM by nordsider.

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